Thinking of You

Spent the morning working in the yard with hubby.  He had pruned the arborvitae & some tree branches.  He raked & I picked put the debris into the bin.  It's always nice to finish a project where you see the results of your hard work.  Figured I'd earned some crafting time, so put off the housework--nothing new for me--LOL!  


Decided to combine the Play Date Cafe Challenge colors of cream, melon & cantaloupe with the Impression Obsession Pack Your Bags challenge.  I had to get creative with this one, so let me explain.  My next trip is going to be a visit to my cousin & his family (& hopefully some cardmaking friends!) in Indianapolis.  One of the city's nicknames is Circle City.  My folks were married in the church on The Circle.  Now you know why my card is made with circles created with Lifestyle Crafts dies.  My cousin lives on a beautiful street with large lots & many trees.  I used my IO tree die, DIE006V & stamped it with the coordinating stamp from Solid Tree, 3115-XL.  After stamping with Versafine Vintage Sepia, I sponged on some green ink & then covered it with Versamark & clear embossed it.  I die cut a second tree from thin cardboard & attached it to the stamped tree to make my own chipboard.  The green circle is stamped with the IO Screen Cover-a-Card, CC049 & the cream card base is embossed with a Sizzix folder.  I have been thinking about my Indiana family, so this sentiment from the Solid Tree stamp set was perfect. I finished it off with a bit of cream twill & some green gems.  I hope your weekend was enjoyable & thanks so much for stopping by. 

Another Splash Card

I'm one of those people who love to do Black, White & a splash of  color which is the challenge at PDCC this week. I also wanted to use the sketch from CAS(E) this Sketch! & play along with the Penny Black Blog For Family challenge.  3 in 1 is pretty unusual for me, but this time it worked!  My stamps by Penny Black are chearful & Always My Sister (I only stamped the one word.)  The flower blossom was black embossed, fussy cut & mounted offset to the second image with foam tape.  My magenta splash is done with 2 sizes of gem stickers.  The blossoms are attached to 2 Spellbinder oval die cuts with the word sister stamped on vellum.  The white embossed piece is done with a Cuttlebug folder.  My sister is one of my biggest fans & uses my cards as decoration in her house.  I've never sent her one in these colors & I think she'll like it.  Hope you're all having a great week.  Your support means a lot to me--thank you.
Update:  Just realized this qualifies for Penny Black Saturday Challenge, so will enter that at the last minute.

Happy Birthday with Sparkle!

I know a lot of you craft in the evenings so you can probably relate to this.  I do have a true color light, which helps, but this morning when I looked at the card I made last night I saw that the yellow was not "lightening yellow" at all.  Funny thing is, if I'd looked behind me at the stack of papers not put away, I'd have seen a sheet of the color I needed.  That'll teach me for putting off cleaning up my space--not that it won't happen again--LOL!  Anyway, this morning my cold is much better & since it's my day off I re-made the card which I'm entering into the challenges for PDCC & Cas-ual Fridays.  It just so happens that CFS is sponsoring the PDCC this week.  I love the CFS Casual Elegance set I recently picked out as my random drawing prize & knew I wanted to use it for both challenges for a chance to get some more stamp sets.  My supplies are: Lifetime Crafts circle dies, Memento Rose Bud & Gray Flannel, COPIC Y02, Mark Richards crystal stickers.  The glitter is a large bottle labeled "sample" that cost me a whole 75 cents years ago at a stamp convention.  I used a Quickie Glue Pen to apply the glitter.  It works perfectly every time--never clogs--definitely worth keeping on hand.  Thanks so much for choosing to spend some of your time checking my blog--I appreciate every one of you.  Have a great week.

First Version Made At Night

Blissful

The current PDCC colors of Midnight, Aqua & Terra Cotta grabbed my attention as I don't think I've ever used them together.  Many of you probably know my favorite style is elegant & that's what I decided to do for my entry.  I started by inking Penny Black's wonderful floral background stamp called "blissful" with VersaMagic Night Sky.  Then I used sponge daubers to color the blooms with VersaMagic Turquoise Gem & the leaves with VersaMagic Red Brick.  I like the sort of artsy effect it gives--not worrying about staying in the lines.  Then I covered it with Shimmer Spritz Bronze & added dots of Stickles. The panel is attached to a navy card with a bow & pearls to complete the look. The color of the ribbon actually blends with the leaves in real life.
I'm happy to report that a few doses of antibiotics have our Keesha furbaby looking like her old self again.  Thanks for all the well-wishes.  Hope your week is off to a good start & thanks for taking time to stop by my blog.

Best Wishes

I loved Laurie's card for this week's Muse challenge when I saw it on Monday.  The first thing that caught my eye was the script on the panel. I have an old stamp I "splurged" on years ago & it just sits in the drawer.  I also loved the idea of the sentiment showing through a negative die cut.  Actually, I loved everything about the card & couldn't think of anything to do but copy it--LOL!  During my lunch break today, I went through various ideas.  I thought maybe something with kraft & white, but before I started I checked the current PDCC colors & that did it--love those neutrals!  I immediately thought of my K&Co paper pad I bought in clearance--one of my best purchases--& finally I do have a card to post.  Thanks for coming by--your visits are always appreciated.  Enjoy the weekend & stop by Muse if you'd like to vote on the winning cards.  Also entering Simon Says Stamp Challenge for a birthday/celebration card in honor of their 4th birthday.

Laurie's Muse Inspiration Card

What's Up? and an honor

Another try at a CAS card--this time for PDCC & CASology.  Most 3rd graders can color better than me, but today I actually used my COPICs (Y21 & BV00) to color this cute little Hero Arts butterfly--yah--simple is good!  The sentiment is from the same older clear set called Happy Hello.  I think this is the first time I've used these 2 stamps.  Yellows are not really my color, but I have to say I love the PDCC color combo.  At first I expected to use mostly the Lavender, but I'm actually really happy I decided to use my textured Buttercream colored cardstock for my "white space"--what do you think?  I punched out the butterfly & matted it with a scrap cut with the smallest Spellbinders Lacey Circles die.  Being CAS, I resisted the urge to add embellishments except for a spot of lavender Stickles on the antennas.

I had a wonderful surprise & honor on Saturday when Sally (Abbey's Attic) nominated me for my second Liebster award. This award was designed to promote blogs which have less than 200 followers. Once the award is accepted, the idea is to pay it forward to five other blogs you enjoy, encouraging others to visit, leave comments, and hopefully follow. 
To accept the award:Thank the person who gave it to you and link back to their blog. Post the award on your blog. Give the award to five other bloggers who have less than 200 followers.  
Write a comment on their blog letting them know they have been nominated. 
I hope you'll check out Sally's wonderful work & her cute kitty cats as well as these 5 inspiring blogs with less than 100 followers: 

Stacy, Sweethearts & Sweet Tarts--A fellow Oregonian (we gotta meet one of these days!) who shares heartwarming "mommy" stories, her wonderful decorating, views of our neck of the woods AND terrific crafting projects. 
Jessi, OneCraftyMama--A fairly new friend I met through the new Muse Blog.  She makes beautiful cards & took time to enter my 1 yr Blogiversary Challenge with a fabulous kraft canvas butterfly card.
Kristie, Kreative Kristie--Another blog I discovered through Muse. She nails every challenge she enters--"Kreative" is the perfect name for her blog.
Kim, Inky Kim Craft--Not sure how we found each other, but we seemed to just connect.  She lives in England, her style is completely different than mine & I love seeing what she comes up with--lots of gorgeous elements.
Martha, Martha's Creations--We met through Flickr & now both have blogs.  Anytime you need a little inspiration, just check out her fabulous tag cards--so professional no matter what style she chooses.

So many wonderful blogs--can't see them all, but maybe you can take time to check out these 5 ladies--you won't be disappointed!

Spring Colors & More Glitter!

I do love glitter & have many bottles of the stuff, not to mention a large Stickles collection.  I ran 3 die cut borders through my Xyron machine at the time I made the last card, so decided to glitter up another one & use the colors from PDCC171--tangerine, apricot, mint--perfect for an Easter card.  I inked PTI Rosie Posie with ColorBox Tangerine & Apricot and VersaMagic Aquatic Splash.  The image is die cut with Spellbinders Labels 10 & is sponged with Apricot ink before the die is removed.  I stamped the flower center a second time & die cut it with a LifeStyle Crafts circle, added prisma glitter & popped it up.  The stem & leaves are highlighted with a Gelly Roll pen.  The embossed background is by Cuttlebug.  I used the Tim Holtz foam pad applicator to ink it lightly with Aquatic Splash--love the effect!  The Spellbinders scalloped border has the same prisma glitter & is attached to the background along with a strip of apricot ribbon.  I just didn't like the look of adding a sentiment, so that will be on the inside.  There's still a few hours left, so this will be my second PTI MIM entry & I know I'll be making more cards with glitter borders!  Since I've used green on my card, I'm also linking it up to Die Cut Diva's challenge this month where Hero Arts is sponsoring the prize--check it out!  Hope you've had a lovely weekend--we had sunshine & blue skies--looked a lot warmer than it was, but still made me think Spring is around the corner.  Don't forget--there's a week left to enter my Blogiversary challenge if you're game.  Thanks for your encouragement & kindness--always look forward to reading what you think.

Splash of Emerald

I'm one of the many people who love the splash of color challenges.  This week's PDCC splash is Emerald Green.  It just so happens that I have 8 jars of Lumiere Metallic Acrylic paints including Pearl Emerald.  I've had them for over 10 years & they just sit in my craft closet.  I've admired some backgrounds done with paints & decided this was the time to give it a try.  I used a foam brush to swipe it onto a scrap of white cardstock & let it dry over night.  It has a gorgeous shimmer you can't really see in the photo unfortunately.  Then I stamped & embossed the fun sentiment from Hero Arts Find Joy clear set.  I wasn't happy with the plain white card front, so I stamped the Hero Arts Fabulous Flourish (admired it forever & finally just broke my "no more woodblock stamps" rule--LOL--won't be the last time either!) in Memento Tuxedo black in 2 corners.  Took me a long time to decide whether to add the strip of ribbon & if so, which one.  In the end I chose this simple stitched grograin & was happy with the result.  Finished off with clear gems & attached the focal point with foam tape.  Since this is my first card using paint & the Flourish stamp, I'm also entering this month's Hero Arts challenge.  Thanks so much for taking a look at my work & letting me know what you think.

Love in Miniature

My cards are often not A2 size as I just cut what looks good--sometimes a problem to mail--LOL!  When I saw CAS-ual Fridays challenge to make a card with 1 short side & 1 long side, figured it was a good one for me.  It's been awhile since I played along with PDCC, so I'm using those colors: plum, mustard, rose. My stamps are old ones by Hero Arts, so this is another entry for A Blog Named Hero's current challenge. Just for fun, I decided to make a miniature card--5x2.  The heart branch is stamped in Versafine Toffee after wiping the ink off the hearts.  Then the hearts were colored with 2 Memento markers & I stamped again using my positioner.  I punched 2 tiny circles, colored them with the same markers, attached clear Rain Dots & glued them for the embellishments.  Stickles Star Dust is added to the hearts & 3 scored lines finish it off.  I think this will go to the Card Drive, as a kid might get a kick out of the unusual size.  So glad you took time to come by.  I always look forward to reading your comments.  Have a wonderful week.

Second Try

Decided my first card for PDCC splash challenge (black & white with maroon) didn't come close enough to the maroon in the inspiration photo, so I made another card.  I used another Fancy Label from the ODBD set stamped in Versafine Onyx Black.  This time I sprayed the chipboard ornament with Tattered Angels Black Cherry.  The sentiment is a Stampendous! wood mounted stamp I really like.  The dies are Spellbinders Labels 17 & Parisian Motifs along with MFT rolled roses die cut from felt.  All the layers are mounted with foam tape & pearls seemed like the best choice for embellishing.  We've had a very wet weekend which was good for getting the house decorated (except for the tree) & making cards!  Wishing all of you a great week & I do really appreciate your stopping by.

JOY

 Today's card works for 2 challenges--ODBDSLC to include an ornament & PDCC to use black, white & a splash of maroon.  I got a pack of 12 chipboard ornaments for $1 at Michael's & since I don't have any ODBD Christmas stamps that's what I used.  I sprayed it with Smooch Spritz Wine Berry & Tattered Angels Black Cherry & it has a lovely shimmer, hard to see in the photo.  ODBD Fancy Labels image is stamped with Versafine Onyx Black & the dies are Spellbinders Labels 17.  "Joy" is spelled with MM white glitter stickers & the Recollections rose has a little Stickles added to the petal edges.  The embossing folder used on the card front is Cuttlebug.  Quick post today as I'm supposed to be dusting & getting the Christmas decorations out.  Hubby already put up the outside lights which is my favorite thing for the holiday season.  Hope you're having a great weekend.  I look forward to your comments.

Shimmery Watercolor Look

I keep missing the PDCC, but finally got a card done in time!  I was intrigued with this week's colors, as I would never have put the 2 shades of green together.  Decided it was time to pull out my neglected Penny Black flower amongst flowers stamp which I  embossed with black ink & clear ep on white cardstock.  Then I pulled out 3 Distress Inks that were close to the challenge colors: evergreen bough, worn lipstick & crushed olive.  When the inking was done, I sprayed the piece with my favorite glimmer--Tsukineko's Sheer Shimmer Spritz Frost--& let it dry.  Then I cut the image into 4 equal sections, matted each with black cardstock & mounted them with foam tape to a mat cut from gray shimmer cardstock.  That was mounted to the black card with foam tape.  I added Glossy Accents to the centers of the big flowers & tiny black pearls to small flowers.  I love seeing all the various design styles in our craft, but my eye still loves clean, uncluttered, symmetry.  Hope you do, too.  I won't have my computer for a few days so it'll be a little while before I catch up with all of you.  Please know how much I appreciate your encouragement & sweet comments.  Have a great week!

It's a glorious day!--plus a card

Amazing April weather--feels like summer!  We took the doggies for a day trip to check out the lake where we boat.  The docks are in water & the marina will open very soon.  The 2 open loops at the campground had a lot of people & we were surprised by how many boats were in the lake.  The water would be freezing, but guess they were fishing.  Thought you might like to see a picture of me with Blitz & Keesha.  You can see the top of snow-covered Mount Jefferson in the background.

Now for my card.  I used the vibrant colors from PDCC128 HERE to make my Flourishes TT card where the challenge HERE is to use your favorite stamp set.  Not sure I can say I have a favorite from Fourishes, but the Medallion Motif ranks way up there!  It's one of the stamps I knew I wanted as soon as I saw it in the pre-release post.  The image is colored with COPICS RV19 & YR04 after being embossed in black.  The same markers color the butterfly from the Butterflies & Blossoms set.  The butterfly is covered with Distress Rock Candy Stickles.  The Recollections hard molded flowers are also edged with the same markers & Stickles.  I haven't used this All Night Media punch in ages, but glad I didn't get rid of it now.  The center dies are Spellbinders Labels 9 & a circle.  I had to trace & cut the Flamingo Pink one by hand for the size I needed.  The gems are also colored with RV19--love being able to do that!  Foam tape is used to attach the Medallion panel & die cuts & tiny pearls finish off the card.  I appreciate your visiting & leaving me a comment.  Wishing you a great week.

Quick and Simple--make that simple!

I knew I wanted to enter PTI MIM 52 here since the video was making glittered buttons & I love glitter.  I also wanted to do PDCC 120 here since it's been awhile & I wanted to try the color combo.  I had this card pretty much planned in my head & thought it would be fast to make--wrong!  Should have known better--I'm always the last one done in a class.  It took 2 tries (can't tell the flowers are on a layer of white cardstock over a goof!) & I had to get out my stamp positioner, but in the end I did get this simple card made.

  PTI Flower Fusion 9, Greeting from Hero Arts Leaf Prints
  PTI Take Three die
  VersaMagic Aloe Vera & Mango Madness; Versafine Onyx Black
  Little punched butterflies from my friend Natalie (sponged w Mango Madness)
  Elmer's spray adhesive; Creative Beginnings Ultra Fine Diamond Dust glitter
  Dress It Up little white buttons

Hope you've had a lovely Saturday and thanks for visiting!